Writing Center  Tags: writing_center writing tutoring writing_intensive  

Survival Grammar

Join Grammar Guru Claire Ribeiro every week for a grammar lesson!  This workshop addresses many of the grammar issues that students face in their writing.  The workshop begins with a lesson and continues with interactive exercises to help you practice your grammar and improve. 

All PCCC students are welcome, no matter what level!  A different grammar topic will be featured every week!

Every Monday

5:40-6:55

Every Friday

4:15-5:30

Writing Center 

    (Paterson campus, in the library)

The following workshops are open to all PCCC students. These workshops are designed to help students become better writers in a variety of situations. Some workshops may focus on the CWE, but all are designed to provide information that applies to writing in other scenarios, including in class.

All workshops are FREE for PCCC students. You do not need to register and can merely show up at the beginning of a workshop.

Preparing for the CWE and Other Essay Exams

This workshop will focus on helping students manage their time when taking a timed essay exam.  It offers strategies for planning the essay and writing within a time constraint so that you maximize abilities and chances of passing the exam.  This is especially helpful for students who have never taken the CWE or who have problems with running out of time or going off topic.  Materials needed:  pen and paper.

Mock CWE

Practice for the CWE! Come to the Writing Center and take a practice test. You will have the ability to answer a practice question similar to the type of question asked on the actual exam. As with the test, you will have 2 hours to write the essay, and then you will be able to workshop your "test" with a tutor to see what your strengths and weaknesses are. This mock exam will be especially helpful for students who have test anxiety or time management problems. Materials needed: pen and paper.

Note: REGISTRATION IS REQUIRED FOR THIS WORKSHOP. To register, email cwe_prep@pccc.edu with the time you would like to attend (10 or 5) and your major.

Attacking the Question

Ever get an essay assignment from an instructor that seems to make no sense whatsoever? Ever sit down to write a paper only to realize you don't even know where to start? The place to begin an essay is with the question. What is being asked of you? What is required in the answer? This workshop will teach you how to attack an essay starting with the question. You'll learn to decode "professor speak" and figure out what's really being asked of you. From there, you'll learn how to formulate and organize an answer.  This workshop will help students taking the CWE to figure out exactly what a question is asking and how to go about answering it.

If you have a paper that you're struggling with, feel free to bring the topic to the workshop to get some examples of how to get started. Materials needed: pen and paper.

Proofreading Strategies for the CWE and Other Essay Exams

This workshop will help students overcome some of the problems with editing of writing an essay in a timed setting.  Because students taking the CWE don’t have the luxury of having others read the essay or putting it aside for a while and looking at it later with “fresh” eyes, students must use other strategies to edit their work and recognize their mistakes.  This workshop will give you some strategies geared specifically toward timed exams and allow you to notice more of your errors before you turn in the test!  It will be especially helpful for students who are not confident in their writing abilities, haven’t written in a while, or have problems with grammar and editing. Materials needed:  pen and paper.